By John Stammers

Feb 7, 2013 7:21:00 AM

The forward missed out on England's friendly with Brazil
at Wembley on Wednesday night, which the Three Lions won 2-1. The
Spurs boss has now indicated that his attacker will be unavailable
for 2-to-3 weeks, but insists it could have been much
worse.

"It’s good news in the end, because it could have been
further damage to [Defoe's] ankle," Villas-Boas told
reporters.

The problem, with Emmanuel Adebayor not yet back from
the Africa Cup of Nations, also leaves Spurs with just one
recognized striker - that being Clint Dempsey, who is unlikely to
be back until Friday after featuring and scoring in the United
States' World Cup qualifying loss to Honduras.

The Togo international Adebayor should return soon,
though, after his country exited the Cup of Nations at the
quarterfinal stage at the hands of finalist Burkina Faso last
Sunday.

Villas-Boas said his Adebayor is indeed expected to
return to training in the next couple of days, saying, "We're
trying to establish the best flight connections for [Adebayor]."

Another player that could return to provide a boost to
the North London club is Younes Kaboul, who has played just once
this season after undergoing knee surgery in August. The defender,
who was one of the club's most consistent performers last season,
had initially been expected back in January but saw that date
chalked off by his manager after numerous set-backs in his
recovery.

Villas-Boas has now revealed that the center half will
return to training on Monday and could be back in first-team action
within three weeks, but stressed that the club will not rush him
into anything.

"It's going to be his first training session since August so we
have to be very careful," Villas-Boas said. "He has to catch up,
but with the tremendous willingness he has to come back, hopefully
[he will be back] within 2-to-3 weeks." Follow GOAL.COM on